2019-03-12 Services & Organisation Committee Agenda

SERVICES & ORGANISATION COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA                                                12 MARCH 2019


5                        FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS
DOCUMENT INFORM AT ION




Author                              Chief Executive Officer, Brett de Chastel
                                    CEO’s Office

Index                               ECM/ Subject/ State / Federal Government Grants

Attachments                         Nil



EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Nil

RECOMMENDATION
That Council note the report by the Chief Executive Officer to the Services & Organisation
Committee Meeting dated 12 March 2019 and:
A.                       Join with other local governments across Australia in calling upon the Commonwealth
                         Government to increase the amount of funds allocated to Local Government Financial
                         Assistance Grants to the equivalent of 1% of total Commonwealth taxation revenue;
B.                       Request the Mayor to write to the Commonwealth Minister for Local Government, Senator
                         Bridget McKenzie advising of Council’s position on this issue; and
C.                       Request the Mayor to write to each of the Wide Bay Federal electorate candidates for the
                         upcoming federal election seeking their commitment to increasing the amount of funds
                         allocated to the Local Government Financial Assistance Grants to the equivalent of 1% of
                         total Commonwealth taxation revenue.



REPORT
Introduction
With the upcoming federal election, the Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ)
and the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) are taking the opportunity to highlight
the current inequities in funding between different levels of government in Australia. In particular,
they are highlighting the inequities in relation to the Financial Assistance Grants (FAGs)
distributed by the Commonwealth government to local government.

Along with other local governments in Queensland (and indeed across Australia), we are being
asked to pass resolutions calling on the candidates in the upcoming federal election to make a
commitment to increasing the level of funding for Financial Assistance Grants to the local
government sector.

Background
Each of the current 3 levels of government in Australia collect revenue via a range of taxation
mechanisms. Examples of taxation revenues are set out below:
 Commonwealth - personal income tax, company tax, GST, capital gains tax, FBT, excise tax
   etc
 State governments - land tax, stamp duty, payroll tax, mining royalties etc
 Local governments – general rates and property charges.


                                                                                                   Page 18 of 60